How ServiceMaster of the Valley Uses GPS Fleet Tracking to Prevent Vehicle Theft

When one of ServiceMaster of the Valley's trucks was stolen, there was no way to trace it. The truck was eventually recovered, but it came back damaged, and nothing was in place to stop the same thing from happening again. That was the moment franchise owner Harry Harmes started looking at telematics, and it's how the business ended up with Geotab.

About ServiceMaster of the Valley

ServiceMaster of the Valley is a ServiceMaster franchise in Kentville, Nova Scotia. It provides commercial and residential carpet cleaning, furniture cleaning and insurable loss cleaning, running a small field-service fleet of four vehicles.

The challenge: a stolen truck and no way to find it

Before telematics, ServiceMaster of the Valley had no security measures on its vehicles. When a truck was stolen, the team couldn't locate it, and the damaged vehicle that eventually came back was a reminder that the business had no protection against a repeat.

Why Geotab for GPS fleet tracking

Once Harmes decided to invest in telematics, several providers approached him. He chose Geotab for two reasons: it is a Canadian company, and it offered the most seamless, streamlined installation process of the options he looked at.

Two years in, Harmes values knowing where the company's vehicles are at any point in the day. If a truck is supposed to be on a job, he wants to know it's actually there, and now he can.

The results

Simpler billing and fewer customer disputes

Knowing exactly where vehicles are and the routes they took has made customer service and billing easier. When a customer questions what time a truck arrived, or disputes hours on a job billed by the hour, ServiceMaster of the Valley can settle it quickly with the trip data.

Safer driving

Harmes also uses Geotab to monitor driver behaviour such as speeding. He can identify drivers who were going well over the limit and address safety concerns fast, using real-time audible in-vehicle feedback and detailed reports.

Peace of mind

Beyond day-to-day tracking, Harmes knows the data will be there to back him up if a major customer issue ever needs resolving.

Could GPS fleet tracking protect your fleet?

You don't need a large fleet to benefit from telematics. Whether you run four vehicles or four hundred, Can-Am Telematics and Wireless can help you set up Geotab GPS fleet tracking to protect your vehicles, simplify billing and improve driver safety. Contact our team to talk through your fleet.

Read the original success story and download the PDF on Geotab's site: ServiceMaster: Preventing theft.